In multiperson conferences, most people's first choice for a conference would be a face-to-face meeting with all of the participants or parties. All conversations are then in real time but at a great deal of expense, particularly where participant travel is involved. One alternative to face-to-face meetings is a TV conference wherein participants go to local TV studios for an electronic "face-to-face" meeting. TV meetings tend to lessen cost by reducing travel but studios equipped for TV conferencing are limited and facility rental might occasionally even exceed actual face-to-face meeting costs. Still another alternative would be a specially equipped conference room, e.g., with an electronic blackboard, that might be more readily available and at a lower cost than TV conferencing. While this eliminates face-to-face contact, two telephone lines, one of which must be a dedicated high speed data circuit, are usually required for a link-up at each site. Then there is the well known telephone conference call which comprises a widely used relatively inexpensive way of conducting a conference. However, telephone conferencing provides a voice only system even though it is economical enough to permit each individual to have a regular telephone unit.
Computer conferencing, although known, is usually limited to terminal produced text communications with other participants via a central or host computer. A relatively permanent transcript of the text is produced as a by-product of using a host computer, thus allowing participants to enter or leave the "meeting" at uncoordinated times. A returning conferee need only read the proceedings actually missed. Messages may be left for non-attendees. Computer conferencing offers but has not yet realized the potential of using the computer itself as an interactive participant, such as fetching data not previously retrieved and/or conducting real time analyses during the conference. While all of the above prior art systems are useful for the task intended, they lack one or more certain desirable but heretofore unavailable features.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for implementing a conference via a telephone.
Another object of the invention is to provide facilities for recording conferences, sending or receiving messages so that all parties need not be simultaneously present.
Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for integrating graphics into a telephone conference.
A further object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for implementing audio-visual teleconferencing on a real time or delayed basis.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a method and means whereby computerized control of a telephone conferencing system permits the transmission and reception of graphics between the parties prior to or during a telephone conference.